In a unanimous opinion, a three-judge panel in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the stay of President Trump’s travel ban. The Court found in favor of the State of Washington on all of its arguments and held that the Administration had not shown a likelihood of success on the merits of the case. Some commentators have noted that the President could address his national security concerns by rewriting the Executive Order to more specifically address the infirmities noted by the Court, including specifically eliminating lawful permanent residents (i.e., green card holders) from the ban. President Trump, however, upon hearing of the decision immediately tweeted: “SEE YOU IN COURT.” Still, the President – in conjunction with his new Attorney General, Jeff Sessions – will have to decide whether to appeal the request for an emergency stay to the Supreme Court by way of Justice Anthony Kennedy, request an en banc hearing before the Ninth Circuit or go back to the District Court for a hearing “on the merits.” In any case, the travel ban will remain paused until the next decision.
